Springfield man sentenced to 25 years for meth and gun charges

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A Springfield man has been sentenced following a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Greene County and possessing firearms in 2022.

According to a United States Department of Justice press release, Russell Lee Deck Jr., 47, has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison without parole followed by three years of supervised release.

Deck pleaded guilty on Nov. 8, 2024, to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

On Aug. 18, 2022, a Springfield police officer attempted to conduct a traffic stop on Deck in a hotel parking lot.

Deck put his vehicle in reverse and rammed into the back of the officer's vehicle. The officer came outside their car with his duty weapon and ordered the occupants to stop.

Deck drove forward and then put his car into reverse and rammed into the officer again and then fled the scene.

Deck began a high-speed pursuit in a residential neighborhood with police while a passenger in the car began shooting at the police's vehicle.

The pursuit ended after Decl crashed into a Jeep SUV at an intersection. The Jeep owner was unharmed, but the vehicle sustained significant damage.

Deck fled the scene of the crash and was later arrested by Greene County deputies who found him hiding under a car.

Officers found two bags containing 46.2 grams of methamphetamine in Deck's pockets. Police also found two handguns in the front passenger side floorboard.

The passenger in the vehicle who shot at police, Blake Basten, was sentenced to 10 years for two counts of felon in possession of a firearm on Feb. 27, 2024.

Deck's co-defendant, Justin Hollingsworth, was sentenced to 18 years for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime on June 24, 2024.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Wan. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Springfield Police Department.